Tim Baker wrote:I'd never heard of Talislanta until now. I'd be interested to learn more about the setting and the upcoming edition, if you're able to share.

Talislanta is one of my favorite settings. Something about the art of P.D. Breeding-Black back in the 1st/2nd edition days of it captured my eye and I've loved it since. Not to slight any of the other artists, because there have been a lot of really talented artists involved in the game (I realize you didn't ask that part, but that's what caught me first).

My first exposure to Talislanta was the 2nd edition handbook, with a Thrall Warrior on the cover (waist-up picture), covered entirely in colorful tattoos, holding his greatsword in front of him.

The previous editions Talislanta is a fantasy setting long after a magical apocalypse. The tag-line was "No elves", though many folks like to point out that there are elf stand-ins. It is not your standard fantasy though. Despite the elven stand-ins, most of the races are not the typical fantasy options. And character balance is not something that occurs based on the races. Balance is something that really has to be managed by the GM in running the adventures.

The next edition, Talislanta The Savage Lands, is set much closer to the apocalypse. Reading through the races, you can see some of the future races in the ones presented. It is a very interesting direction for someone who has enjoyed the setting for decades. I don't have time to discuss much more right now, but will try to give more as I have time.

If you are interested in checking the earlier editions out, take a look at www.talislanta.com. All of the previous editions are available as free PDFs there. Something very cool that the creator, Steven Sechi, gave his full blessing on.

Imaginos wrote:I'd say your best source of information at this time is the Talislanta facebook group. That is where the call for playtesters went out and where most updates have been made.

I'm a member of that group, but I've been busier than I used to be and have had less time to go there. I'll have to try to get back soon.

Imaginos wrote:The RPG has not been funded by anything yet. There will be a separate kickstarter to fund it when it nears completion. From my understanding, they want it mostly done before kickstarting.

That's a good idea. If it is mostly finished, that should help prevent delays.

Imaginos wrote:BTW, I'm one of the playtesters, not anybody tied to the production of the game.

Imaginos wrote:BTW, I'm one of the playtesters, not anybody tied to the production of the game.

As one of the writers and head editor for the early draft, I'm interested in your ideas/feelings about how the setting stuff in the playtest. I realize it has gone through a couple of edits since my team and I handed it off, but its neat to see how some things translate out. Especially since we had some notes about the direction/scope of things that were explicitly not included in the text.

Imaginos wrote:BTW, I'm one of the playtesters, not anybody tied to the production of the game.

As one of the writers and head editor for the early draft, I'm interested in your ideas/feelings about how the setting stuff in the playtest. I realize it has gone through a couple of edits since my team and I handed it off, but its neat to see how some things translate out. Especially since we had some notes about the direction/scope of things that were explicitly not included in the text.

Notes that were "explicitly not included in the text"? That sounds intersting. Was that something designed for playtesting, that you removed in order to give gamesmasters something to add themselves?

Notes that were "explicitly not included in the text"? That sounds intersting. Was that something designed for playtesting, that you removed in order to give gamesmasters something to add themselves?

SMS had some overarching ideas for what was going on. Basically answers to mysteries and such. So, those kinds of answers weren't included as things in the text itself, though there are probably enough clues there for folks to piece things together and, if not arriving at the exact answer he had in mind, at least getting really close.

Notes that were "explicitly not included in the text"? That sounds intersting. Was that something designed for playtesting, that you removed in order to give gamesmasters something to add themselves?

SMS had some overarching ideas for what was going on. Basically answers to mysteries and such. So, those kinds of answers weren't included as things in the text itself, though there are probably enough clues there for folks to piece things together and, if not arriving at the exact answer he had in mind, at least getting really close.

Ah. Gotcha! You don't want to paint a GM into the corner with answers and stuff.